2004 Flashback: Speculators Got Blamed Then, Too

Business Week (August 30, 2004) -- Are Speculators Driving Up The Price Of Oil? There is no doubt most of oil's huge price leap -- up 40% in the past year, to $45 a barrel (see chart above) -- is grounded in fundamental supply-and-demand issues. But how much of crude's big bounce is also because of speculation -- hedge funds and other financial players pushing up the price in futures markets? That's tougher to answer, but these traders are surely adding froth to an already superheated market.